Magic Malfoy
by OogieBoogie
Summary: Draco Malfoy works at a special club called "Ascendio" and has quite a reputation for what he does. He does it well though, so the ladies love him and the men would love to be him. And then ... and then Hermione Granger became a regular.
1. Chapter 1

The girls squealed ferociously. Some were very near to tears, and he smirked.

And he did it again.

They squealed some more. Apparently, they really liked this whole slow thrusting motion he was doing with his hips. He shone underneath the spotlight, what with all that glitter – he was positively drowning in it. Every movement, every swing of his hips and every turn of his head sent glitter everywhere, including on the women that were lined up very closely to the front, breathing heavily as they watched Draco perform his routine. He had two dances to perform tonight – one as the Ice Prince (hence the glitter) and the encore. He was so popular that he would have to perform an encore every single time he got on stage.

Draco was _that_ good, and he knew it.

He knew just what to do, who to look at … take for example, at this moment: he grabs his zip at the front while his hips swung left and right according to the beat of the music. It was nothing too raunchy, surprisingly, given the fact that this was a male strip club. It was soft, slow, with deep bass beats … the Muggles called it Deep House, and he was quite taken with it and had a select few for his routines. He then selects a woman to stare at intently and when she notices that he's looking at her, he will send her a secret smile, wink and slowly remove his trousers. Down, down, down they go and so do those hundreds of pairs of eyes staring, following his movement.

To his viewers, he wasn't Draco Malfoy. To his viewers, he was Magic Malfoy. And Magic Malfoy was nothing short of fantastic when he was on stage – most of the witches here came just to see him and he cannot even remember when the nickname 'Magic Malfoy' started. It was the oddest thing, and it was cheesy but he quite liked it. And he liked the flying sacks of Galleons the most.

He took a step forward, and another – slow, sensuous, like a panther. He was clad in only a cerulean thong, but he had never felt so alive, so glorified. Looks like the conceited, confident and cocky nature was inherent and no matter what has changed and how drastically so, he was still the same old Malfoy.

He shut his eyes, threw his head back and caressed his neck, shoulders, chest … and he smiled, the lower his hands got, the louder the screams. So down and down he went until he reached the strings on either sides of his hipbones. Thumbing them, he made a show of releasing a lusty moan and chants of '_yes, yes, and yes_' and just as he was about to pull the whole thing down (the screams were deafening now), the spotlight went off, the music halted and all was dark.

Instantaneously, the crowd went wild – some were cheering madly, some were protesting and most of all, they were screaming "more, more, more!" and Draco loved it. He allowed himself a moment to release a low, triumphant and dark chuckle before bending down to quickly pick up his discarded clothing and sacks of Galleons. After double checking that he didn't leave anything behind (especially money), he jogged towards the backstage and was met with a group of young men dressed in various outfits – Healers, Ministry officials, Aurors, the whole enchilada.

"Terrific show as per usual, Malfoy," one of the strippers commented and offered him a high-five and Draco greeted it with much enthusiasm, his triumphant grin never leaving his face.

"Thanks. Have fun out there," he nodded as the other men sent him impressed looks. They all wanted to be like him, he knew. Before he came, this club was almost run-down and the owner had been contemplating selling it off to a Potioner …

Draco's smile fell a little and he shook his head. No, no. Better not go there. There were other pressing matters such as: removing all that glitter from his clothes. He entered his dressing room – a luxurious, dimly-lit room with a massive selection of clothes arranged neatly on standing hangers. They were also arranged carefully according to colour and length. Draco was quite uptight when it came to things like that. Everything had to be perfect – from his room, to the music, to the dance, to the way he looked.

He laid his clothes gently over a chair and grabbed his wand to remove every single trace of glitter on his skin before looking for his dressing gown. He searched everywhere – his built-in wardrobe, the hangers outside and in the restroom but it was nowhere to be found. In the end, he shrugged and grabbed a stray towel and wrapped it tightly around his waist. The steady, muffled thump of the music in the lounge and occasional screams could be heard as Draco stuffed a biscuit into his mouth while his eyes swept quickly through _The Daily Prophet._

**HARRY POTTER & GINEVRA WEASLEY HAVE SET THE DATE**

Draco only spared two seconds looking at the picture of Potter smooching the Weaslette before turning the page. Rubbish, rubbish, rubbish. Everything was rubbish and Draco gave up. Chucking the newspaper onto his dressing table, he walked over to a shelf and grabbed a disc case. He plopped down onto the nearest sofa, crossed his legs and began leafing through the discs. He had about an hour to decide what routine he wanted to do as his encore before Ascendio closed for the night.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Draco said airily, not bothering to look up as he frowned while trying to decide between two songs.

"Ah, Draco," a gregarious voice called out.

"Yes, Jimmy?" Draco asked, sending him a glance before returning his attentions to the discs in his hands.

"I've just come to deliver your, err, gifts," he ended it with a chuckle. Draco looked up and saw that Jimmy – the owner – dressed in a suit but arms were filled with heart-shaped boxes and chocolates and cards. He was a portly man with a face that perpetually smiling and cheeks that were always rosy. "They seem to be increasing in number every time you perform."

"Mmhmm," Draco hummed noncommittally and with a last, deep frown, he opted for Michael Jackson's In The Closet song. And then, he finally gave Jimmy his full concentration.

"Well, bring those lovely gifts over here and we can share them," Draco signaled for him to come towards him as he cleared a table nearby.

"I don't mind these exotic chocolates – the one with dates," Jimmy said, arranging them haphazardly on the table. Draco made a face at the word 'dates'.

"You can have those, Jimmy. I don't like them."

"The wife doesn't mind them too, so thanks," Jimmy shrugged and started chewing on one.

"Is she well?" Draco asked as he tore open a box of dark chocolate.

"Yes she is lovely, thanks," Jimmy nodded.

And so they stood there in silence, munching on chocolates as they read love notes meant for Draco – some were sweet, heartbreaking and there were some that were downright raunchy and Draco didn't even bother to read the rest.

"You'd think that with you not replying to them that they'd stop, but they only press on," Jimmy laughed at a particularly sappy poem from a young girl.

Draco chose not to reply to that, opting instead to sniff at a chocolate in the shape of a seahorse. Those looked nice but he always had to make sure that they weren't laced. Once, Jimmy ate a row of laced chocolates and ended up battling his way through the crowds outside to reach the person who'd laced the chocolates and tried to kiss her whilst proclaiming his undying love for her. Jimmy's wife had been pretty pissed off when Jimmy had shown up at their doorstop with Draco, singing love songs for someone that wasn't her.

"Ah, yes, almost forgot. There is a bride-to-be here tonight, and her friends have specifically asked for you to give her quite a treat during your encore performance," Jimmy grinned cheekily. "And then maybe after you can go over and say hi, you know, the usual."

"That should be no problem," Draco answered casually and cast a Tempus. Twenty minutes left. He grabbed the disc earlier and handed it to Jimmy. "I'd better go get ready. Will you please give this to the disc jockey?"

"Right away, Magic Malfoy," Jimmy winked at him and Draco shook his head at him before grinning himself.

As soon as Jimmy shut the door, Draco walked over to his wardrobe.

"Now … what shall I be tonight?" he rubbed his chin and smirked evilly.

* * *

><p>"<em>And now … for our final performance for the night … please welcome once more, MAGIC MALFOY!"<em>

There were loud screams of his name and emphatic shrieks from the witches that were present that evening. There was no music yet, but the spotlight came on, right on Draco as he stood at the end of the stage. He had a bowler hat on and a suit, and his head hung low, but he could feel the heat of the spotlight already. He took a step, and the entire place fell into silence, anticipating his next move.

His moves were often slow, slow, slow. Teasing, never too much but just the right amount. He knew the crowd like the back of his hand (and he inspected the back of his hand quite a lot). Just when the crowd held their breaths enough, he straightened and lifted his head as quick as lightning and the music started.

The crowd went wild once more, and just as he tossed his hat towards one overexcited girl, he used another hand to take off his coat. He mouthed the lyrics to the song as he did so, loosening his tie with his now-free hand and sent sly looks at random witches that were watching him intently.

Twisting his hips and dropping his tie onto the floor, another spotlight came on. It highlighted a group of young ladies two tables from the stage, and Draco raised a curious eyebrow. It was the Weaslette.

And then it made sense – that newspaper article earlier. So _she _was the bride-to-be. Draco let out a bark of laughter and shook his head. He bit his lip and tossed his head back in annoyance, but to the crowd it probably seemed like he was lost in lust and ecstasy.

Draco took a deep breath and stepped down from the stage while unbuttoning his shirt, leaving only four more unbuttoned.

_Well, work is work._

He slinked towards the table, towards a very shocked Ginevra Weasley, who was furiously mouthing "That's Draco Malfoy? _The _Draco Malfoy?". She didn't have a look of disgust or anger, but she looked just like any other girl that watched Draco. She was completely smitten, caught unawares and admiring Draco. It was fine, it made Draco's job easier.

The spotlight trailed him and once he was face to face with the Weaslette, her face was so red that Draco wasn't sure whether it was because of the spotlight heat or Draco's close proximity. Maybe both.

"Hello there, Ginevra," Draco sent her a devilish grin, whilst making a show of eyeing her up and down. "So I hear you're getting married."

"Y-y-yes," she stammered, whilst grabbing a friend's hand hard, as if trying to hold her down, preventing her from jumping on Draco and ravishing him.

"I see, what a shame," Draco leaned in close and barely brushed his lips with hers and pulled away and raising his arms. "Care to … finish the rest?"

The Weaslette sent her a confused look, and Draco smiled sweetly before looking down at his buttons. Her eyes widened in understanding and she turned redder. So it was Draco after all, not the spotlight.

"Please," Draco whispered and sent her his best come-hither look. Jimmy had dubbed that look the 'panty-dropping if not panty-wetting look'. Safe to say, it had worked as the Weaslette struggled to compose her facial features from lusty to confident. It failed terribly, of course, as Draco could see her fingers shake as she tried to get the buttons of the holes.

"S-sorry, I just," the Weaslette frowned and still, she struggled. Draco rolled his eyes with a smile and capturing her hands, he moved them away from him gently before unbuttoning the rest. Without warning, Draco threw the shirt off his person and stood there, half-naked in front of Weaslette. Good Merlin, if only Draco knew this was going to happen back in Hogwarts. What a life aye.

He would normally give the special girl the 'boyfriend' experience but today he didn't feel very much up for it, considering that this was his sworn enemy's wife-to-be, and it was best to be careful around her, lest Harry Potter himself would show up and hex his balls off.

What he did was take off his pants, perform a slow, teasing dance that went along with the beat of the song right in front of her and then as he stood only in his briefs, he held out his hand for her to take.

"Dance with me, the song is almost finished," he said gently.

The Weaslette all but jumped at the chance, grabbing his hand and clinging onto him for dear life.

In the middle of their dance, Draco's fingers traced up her back to her shoulders and her hair, caressing, massaging her scalp as they danced and once glance at her face told Draco that he had won. She was basically a pile of goo in his hands, and that meant that his task was completed.

He distinctively felt a couple of hands trying to grab him but he ignored them completely, focusing on pushing the Weaslette over the edge just by words and teasing touches.

He stroked her chin, and her jaw and her eyes fluttered shut. Draco smirked and leaned in, stopping just a centimeter away from her lips.

"I wish you and Potter all the happiness in the world," he whispered seductively and she groaned low in her throat. And with that, Draco released her. All the lights went off and the music stopped.

That was his cue to leave.

He quickly grabbed his things, jumped up the stage and disappeared just in time for the lights to come back on again.

Man, he was good.

"Aaaah, Magic Malfoy, my man!" another stripper high-fived him and clapped him on the back and Draco sent him a smirk.

"Draco, don't forget to say hi before we close," Jimmy reminded him as Draco passed him.

"Yeah, just let me change. Be right there."

* * *

><p>Draco was exhausted and could not stop imagining his bed.<p>

"Hello!" a girl he didn't know greeted her as he walked back to the Weaslette's table. She was bubbly, tall and tan and Draco smiled at her.

"Hi," he said smoothly and turned to the Weaslette. "I trust you enjoyed the show earlier?"

She nodded fervently, apparently still speechless and Draco took that as a compliment.

A bottle of champagne arrived and Draco nodded at the waiter, "Thanks, Anson."

"I believe," Draco said as he opened the bottle, "Congratulations are in order."

"Thanks, Malfoy. You've changed so much," Weaslette said, amazed.

"Not entirely," he winked at her and poured her a glass of champagne.

They clinked their glasses and Draco shut his eyes and he downed the entire content. He wished he was in bed already.

"Anybody else want a glass?" Draco asked.

"I do," a foreign voice came from his right, the person shadowed by darkness. Draco frowned and concentrated on making out the person's features, but, as if reading Draco's mind, the person stepped forward.

Draco's eyebrows almost disappeared into his hairline.

"Granger?" he almost choked.

"Hello, Malfoy," she answered in a cool voice. Draco sized her up and found that she grew into quite an attractive woman, while still retaining some of that Grangeresque features such as that brown curly mane and the bossy air. However, the bossy air was quite fitting now as she was dressed in a corporate outfit. She looked presentable, practical and like, well, Granger.

"Hi," Draco said, still stunned. He regained his senses and poured her a glass of champagne. "You look well."

"You too," she sent him a polite smile and accepted the champagne. She drank the entire content as well, and Draco laughed a little.

"Wow, I'm curious. Hermione Granger here, of all places," he raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I am friends with Ginny," she said, nodding at Ginny, who, was staring at the both of them intently as if watching a soap opera.

"Hmm, I see," Draco nodded, "What is that you do now?"

"Well, I am chairperson of Nebuchadnezzar Water," she grinned.

"Wow. That sounds fantastic. Good on you," Draco said, feeling the slight signs of awkwardness beginning. Maybe it was just him.

"And you, wow," Granger pointed at the stage and then at him.

"Well, I hope whatever I do does not offend your professional eyes," Draco shrugged.

"No, not at all. Quite the contrary," Hermione said quietly and then … and then she had this unfathomable look on her face.

Hmm? What was that?

"Draco!" he heard Jimmy's voice call from afar. Ah, and that was the cue to leave.

"I've got to go," Draco said, faking a sad smile. He leaned and kissed the Weaslette on the cheek (eugh!) and wished her well and happiness for her wedding and then turned back to Granger.

"Well, Granger, I guess I'll see you around. All the best," he nodded politely.

"What? No goodbye kiss for me?" she asked, face as expressionless. It was so unreadable that it could have rivaled Draco's own.

"What? You're … joking?" He asked uncertainly.

Granger shrugged.

"Well …" he quickly leaned in and pecked her on the cheek. "Have a nice evening."

Granger watched him quietly and only nodded.

Well, that has been sufficiently awkward, so Draco immediately turned on his heel and walked towards Jimmy.

He wanted his bed right now.

* * *

><p>The very next day was similar to any other day.<p>

Draco danced, the crowd screamed. Draco undressed and the crowd lost their minds.

There was something different though. As he lost himself to dance, he felt something touch his right hip.

He opened his eyes and almost gasped his heart out of his mouth, and dropped the rose that was part of his routine.

It was Hermione sodding Granger.

She was watching him intently, as she tried to tie a heavy sack of Galleons (well, she was rich now) around the strings of his thong.

For the first time ever, Magic Malfoy faltered in his routine and stood still as he watched Hermione Granger.

After successfully tying the sack of Galleons, Hermione sat back and relaxed, and continued to watch him from the front row. She had apparently booked the front table, and there she was, sitting down all by herself. She wasn't flanked by her girl friends and the Weaslette was nowhere to be seen.

Draco frowned and his mind was conjuring thought after thought.

But – he had a job to do.

He picked up the rose and continued dancing, and just as he was about to turn around and shake his derriere like the crowd liked, he shot her a curious glance.

Hermione Granger was seated in the darkness as she sipped on her wine, but her eyes … her eyes were watching intently.

That was so fucking strange.

**TBC!**

**Wellllllllllllllll, read and review!**

**Oh, and if you're curious – the song Draco was dancing to earlier on was Just Kiddin – Thinking About It.**


	2. Chapter 2

Draco couldn't believe it.

It was the eighth night in a row that he'd caught sight of Granger sitting at the front table, sipping wine glass after wine glass. He'd ignored her the first three times, thinking that this was just her cooling off after what – he imagined – a long day she would have had as chairperson of such a big company.

She did look tired, what with the dark circles under her eyes and from the way she was carelessly drinking so much wine (he was astonished at her tolerance) but she'd eventually leave after Draco finished his set. That sparked Draco's interest. She'd clearly come in here to watch him, and only him. It wasn't a strange phase that she was going through or a casual night of letting off steam.

Was she actually interested in him?

Most women would just immediately buy him drinks straightaway during his break and work up the nerve to actually come up and talk to him. They had never just … watched. Well, watched and left. It surprisingly made Draco feel bereft.

And Granger didn't exactly have the most expressive face ever. In Hogwarts, she always wore her heart on her sleeve. Anger, sadness, happiness – Draco saw them all reflected on her face. But the Granger now, the Granger that followed the movement of his hips as he molested the air, was pure ice. That was such a statement coming from Draco since he was the reigning Ice Prince.

He turned towards her as he danced and unclasped his suspenders, watching for any sign of movement, any sign of expression or anything that would give away the fact that Granger was indeed, affected by Draco.

Nothing.

Not a twitch, not a sparkle in the eye, not a string of saliva dripping from the corner of her mouth (that was the other table, ugh). Not even a blush!

Even her hand that grasped the wine glass didn't flinch or clamp down.

Crap.

Has Magic Malfoy finally lost his magic after all?

Draco sighed low in his throat as he finished off his routine. Time to rectify this.

The lights went off and the music stopped, and he immediately collected his plunder and sped away in nothing but a thong on. Slipping into another stripper's room – Luscious Leslie (Draco had rolled his eyes at what the fans came up with) – he asked him if he could take over his encore instead. The chocolate-skinned man had shrugged and accepted, as this was something they did when one of them had other matters to attend to when they were simply tired and needed the rest.

And so Draco marched off to his own room, changed, ignored the gifts and letters from the other girls and took a spot by the bar, directly opposite Granger.

She was evidently waiting for Draco's encore, as she looked on at the other strippers with indifference – well, more indifference than when she was watching Draco. Again, there were no reactions. Just a fiddle with the rim of the glass and then a soft sigh and occasionally an eye rub here and there, or a cough.

Well, the only indication that she was somewhat interested in Draco was that she gave him her undivided attention. But that was the same as putting a vase in front of Draco – it was constantly there but unmoving and lifeless.

Draco was still trying to figure out why it bothered him so. All he had to care about was the amount of money he got (Granger had given him plenty), and how early he would be able to get back to his bed. Now, however, it seemed as if his mind was on Granger and why she was this jellyfish-thing that watched him every night.

Hmm.

He sat there, still not ordering but training his eyes on Granger. This stare would work, he knew it. He just needed to do it for long moments … and soon she would feel uncomfortable enough to notice that someone, somewhere was watching her. Ah, there it is, the first scratch on the neck and the playing of a stray curl. Just a little bi –

She turned towards him and Draco immediately looked away, focusing on the selection of wines and spirits at the bar, pretending to choose something to drink.

He waited.  
>It was only a matter of seconds before Granger would just stand up, walk up to him and tell him how sexy he was on stage. This was normal.<p>

From the corner of his eye, he noticed a slight movement. Somebody was approaching!

Inwardly, he was shaking and giggling with glee.

"Ah, excuse me, Draco," a voice spoke, and Draco frowned. It wasn't a feminine voice like he was expecting, but a man's voice, "The lady over there told me to give this to you."

Draco finally looked up to Anson, the waiter, and saw that he was holding a glass of red wine.

"The lady over where?" Draco asked him.

"There," Anson pointed at Granger, who was stubbornly not looking at him still. She was looking at the empty stage idly, lost in her own thoughts.

Draco clenched his jaw and accepted the wine glass with a thanks before glaring at the back of Granger's curly head.

Right, looks like she wasn't going to make a move, then. Draco stood up, stuffed his hand in his pocket and made a bee-line towards Granger whilst conveniently ignoring the whispers and squealing of his name as he passed by.

He arrived at his destination, behind Granger and still she wouldn't budge. And so Draco cleared his throat.

The reaction was well, not quite what he was expecting. He was expecting Granger to jump a little, turn around and immediately blush and splutter and maybe mumble an apology and accidentally spill her glass of wine. Something like that.

But what happened was Granger turned towards him slowly, raised her eyebrows a little in recognition and sent him a small smile.

"Hello there," she nodded.

"You gave me the wrong drink," Draco said and sent her his most charming smile.

Granger's answer was quick, "I see. What shall we order for you then?"

And that was said with such an air of professionalism and an expression that was so guarded that he felt like this was a business meeting.

"I think we should get _you_ something, Granger. You need to loosen up a little bit," Draco said teasingly before taking a seat directly opposite her.

Granger sent him an almost-wistful smile, "Is it that obvious?"

"It is flamingly so," Draco nodded seriously.

"Well, I've been tired."

"I know that, but what's with this … rock-hard façade, though? That I'm more curious about," Draco asked, resting his chin on his hand.

"It's not a façade," Granger shook her head and met his gaze dead on.

"What is it then … what's it called … Botox?" Draco raised an eyebrow, not thinking that Granger was the type to go through such measures to keep her youth intact.

"No," she answered, another half-smile. "It's just the way I am now."

"So you're unable to show expressions on your face then? Even when I do my sexiest dance?" Draco asked, unable to stop his curiosity.

Granger stared at him for long moments, as if shocked to hear such an interest from Draco.

"More like I don't feel anything, at all," she said monotonously, as if answering something at a press conference.

"That's impossible. No one can't not feel anything at all, and that's coming from me," Draco argued. Why was he even doing this?

"It's true," Granger nodded and took another sip of her wine, before locking gazes with him once more.

"Why?"

"Life," Granger grinned at last, but her eyes were still dead. It made Draco feel a little uncomfortable. Compared to his life now, and what he was going through – it must feel lots worse to have eyes that pretty with no light in them. Now he was even more curious.

But he decided to forgo it and focus on something else at the moment.

"So watching me must make you feel something, then? Otherwise you wouldn't be here night after night," Draco smiled smugly. "That's a reaction, at least."

"No," Granger answered flippantly.

"What? What do you mean 'no'?" Draco asked, disbelief palpable in his voice.

Such … such blasphemy! How dare Granger not react to his dance and his person! Lies!

"No as in no I don't feel anything at all when I watch you dance, Malfoy," Hermione said flatly.

"So why do you watch me so intently?" Draco retorted, full of confidence.

"You're a very attractive man, Malfoy," Granger said, again with such detachment that it made Draco want to snatch the wine glass away from her mouth and toss it away. Maybe that would make her react.

"That's it?"

Granger watched him again, and then said, "Just because I don't feel anything doesn't mean I can't appreciate beauty, Malfoy."

Had it been any other woman, he would have been flattered. But this time he felt nothing but … insult? That was it? Had he been expecting more?

"Well, thank you Granger, but you'll have to excuse me. I have an encore to perform," he gulped down the entire content of the wine glass, sent her a small wink before jumping up the stage towards the backstage.

And so he told Luscious Leslie that he'd changed his mind, that he wasn't tired anymore and he was fit to dance for the closing performance.

* * *

><p>He had set his sights on Granger ever since the spotlight landed on him and illuminated him. He all but dashed towards the front of the stage and danced his heart out, all the while keeping his gaze locked on Granger's face.<p>

_Just._ A thrust. _You_. Another thrust. _Watch. _Another trust. _Granger_. A thrust that ended with a flourish.

_I am going to make you melt into the_ _floor_, he sent her a devilish smirk at that thought and Granger looked a little confused then.

He jumped off the stage and glided towards Granger, stopped just a breath away, and they were so close he could feel the static emanating from her corporate blouse.

"Granger," he all but purred.

Granger said nothing, she merely watched.

His hands clasped her shoulders – firmly – and started massaging to the beat of the song. He had never done this routine before, especially on someone in the audience, but he knew the song well enough to know what he could do to match the music. Again, it was his choice of slow, sexy sounds.

So on went the massage, and then his hand went upwards to stroke her neck, and he watched her face for any trace of reaction. As soon as his right hand brushed against her pulse point, her eyes fluttered shut and there was a slight reddening across her cheeks, so Draco took that as a _yes_ and his hands ventured upwards towards her scalp and massaged her scalp while playing with her curls.

Everybody else was watching them. Mouths were agape, and breaths were stilled.

"Too stiff, Granger," Draco kept his eyes on hers that were currently shut, "Move with me."

Granger's eyes stopped fluttering shut, but were wide open and met his with fiery defiance. Draco moved his hands towards her hips (keeping it friendly, not too molest-y) and started pushing her slowly, trying to get her to move.

She remained stiff, tense as a pillar around Draco's arms, but slowly and surely, she began to move with him.

"That's it," he grinned, nodding his assent at her eventual complacence.

Left, right, left, right, they moved and just as she was about to get comfortable and that small smile played on her face, he decided it was time to get some serious reaction out of her.

And so he lifted her off the ground to sit her bum on the table, spread her knees (she was wearing slacks that day, of course!) and began to trail his hands up her lap.

The crowd was cheering, and Granger was stilling but it didn't stop him. Her eyes were widened and despite the way she was pursing her lips, her face was a blooming red.

Draco smiled gleefully and trailed his hands up her blouse – just a little – again not too molest-y, just more teasing. It was, after all, part of his job. Just as he was about to dive it to kiss her on the lips, he averted his face and landed on her cheek instead.

He didn't get to see her full reaction as the music stopped and the lights went off, but from the way Granger was clinging to his arm – hard enough to leave crescent-shaped marks – he backed off and fled, grinning like a shark at a beach party.

When he had come out after changing, however, Granger wasn't there anymore.

It was then that Draco was worried that he might have gone overboard and scared her instead of coaxing her. Damn.

* * *

><p>Granger wasn't there the next day either and Draco was a little disconsolate.<p>

He shook his head a couple of times during his nightly routine, trying to get rid of thoughts of Granger and that front-row table that was occupied by a group that did not include Granger.

His mood was deteriorating and he was just about to admit that Granger had been that one thing that kept him smiling cheekily for these past few days. Almost – but not quite. Ugh.

Moodily, he walked back to his changing room after the first routine.

"Draco!" a voice called out from behind him.

"Yes, Jimmy?" he turned around to see the chubby man walk towards him with a rather special-looking box in his hand.

"I've got something nice for you," Jimmy panted.

"For me? Jimmy, you shouldn't have. You know, we've been through this too many times. You don't have to thank me for saving Ascendio's business -"

"No, no, no!" Jimmy laughed, "This is from somebody else."

Draco raised an eyebrow. They both stared at the silver gift box for quite a while and after much persuasion from Jimmy, Draco took it and tugged on the ribbon.

It fell away quite easily and disintegrated into nothing, and he opened the lid.

It was a black and silver bracelet – of a dragon. It had bright green eyes and had its mouth open in a roar, ready to attack. It was exquisite.

"Wow, looks expensive," Jimmy said.

"Aye," Draco agreed as he examined it.

"Who is it from?"

Draco had a strange idea of who it is from, and bet against himself as he opened the note.

_Dear Malfoy,_

_Missed your show tonight, but hope you enjoy this._

_HG._

Draco blinked, surprised that he was actually correct.

"Nice, must be some rich broad you scored, eh?" Jimmy commented.

Draco said nothing, simply lost in his thoughts as he tried to figure out why Granger would send such a thing. Out of the blue, at that.

He was very curious about it, but decided to leave it for when Granger showed up.

* * *

><p>Granger did not show up.<p>

For three days in a row.

And as Draco sat at the bar, dragon bracelet snoozing gently around his wrist, he glared at the front row table.

For fuck's sake, he was acting like a … like a geisha girl being abandoned by her patron.

Draco's eyes widened.

Was that what he was? Some geisha boy pining after his … err, matron?

His eyes narrowed into slits.

Rich Hermione Granger thinks she can buy Draco Malfoy, eh? He thought not.

* * *

><p>Draco was impeccably dressed the next day, in his trademark all-black ensemble. It wasn't as expensive as when he was back at Hogwarts, but this was presentable enough.<p>

He marched up towards the grand staircase of Nebuchadnezzar Water towards the reception.

It was a polished, classy office building and he was met with giggling girls – interns, perhaps – or he was just that good looking.

"Welcome to Nebuchadnezzar Water. How can we help you, sir?" a girl squeaked while trying to fend off more giggles.

Draco smiled politely at her, "Hello, I've come to speak to a Miss Hermione Granger. Is she in?"

"She is, but I'm afraid she's got someone in her office at the moment. Would you like us to take a message?"

"No, that's quite alright, but I was just wondering if I could just sit down outside her office and wait for her to finish. This is a bit of a surprise," he winked at her, and the girl bought it. She couldn't stop smiling and the other was rolling her eyes.

"Of course, right this way, Mister …?"

"Malfoy."

"Right this way, Mister Malfoy, sir," she walked out of the reception desk and gestured coquettishly for him to follow her.

"Thanks," he winked at her just for the hell of it and got into a lift with her.

They began their journey up to the 47th floor, with Draco entertaining the shy glances for the girl but inwardly rolling his eyes. When they finally arrived, he was greeted by plush red and gold carpets and large oak bookshelves and another receptionist.

It was all very Gryffindor and Granger-esque, and Draco merely shrugged.

"Betsy, this is Mister Malfoy. He is here to see Miss Granger," the other girl informed her, and Draco stood next to her.

"Oh, alright. Take a seat and please make yourself comfortable, sir. Do you have an appointment?" Betsy the blonde asked him after the other one got back into the lift.

"No, I don't. I'm an old friend," he grinned toothily at her before collapsing into a red (eugh) sofa and crossing his legs.

"I see. Well, she'll be available in a minute, she's just finishing up some contract with the Chinese franchise."

"Impressive," Draco nodded and grabbed a random book to flip through.

There were muffled chatters of Chinese and a rambunctious laughter, and both Draco and Betsy looked at the door, waiting for the people to emerge.

Seconds later, the door swung open a group of Chinese men in suits were laughing and waving at … presumably Granger, who was seeing them off at the other end of the door.

"Thanks so much! _Xie xie!_" she called and the men nodded back at her, waved once more and got into the lift.

The door was left open, but she could hear Granger's shoes muffled by the carpet. It was getting distant, though.

"Betsy, will you please remind the German franchise about the meeting tomorrow and … a cup of warm Earl Grey, please," came the tired voice of Granger.

"Of course."

The door shut on its own, evidently by Granger's magic.

Betsy shot him a quick smile before sending off an owl to that German franchise and running off to make Granger's tea. Draco returned to his half-reading half-flipping and only looked up when Betsy opened the door once more and disappeared.

"Your tea, Hermione," Betsy said.

"Ah, thank you so much," Granger groaned loudly and Draco could imagine her burying her head in her arms on the desk.

"And I've reminded the German franchise about tomorrow."

"Ah, thank you Betsy. That'll be all."

"Also, there is a Mister Malfoy here to see you."

And then there was silence. A stunned silence.

Draco kept both ears perked up for any sound at all. Had Granger died after hearing his name? Did she pass out or fall asleep? Draco resisted the urge to get up to see what had happened.

After quite a long moment, Granger finally spoke up.

"Malfoy?" she asked quietly, grimly.

"Yes."

More silence.

"Umm …"

That was the first time Draco had ever heard her being so unsure.

"Could you … could you come back and tell me that in five minutes? I'm not sure I can wrap my mind around that."

"Of course."

Draco frowned deeply and his mouth hung open in disbelief. What was so hard to understand?

Betsy reappeared moments later and sent him another smile before shutting the door.

"She will see you in five minutes," she informed her, not knowing that he heard everything.

"Right."

Draco was already tapping his foot impatiently by the third minute, and just as he was about to tell Betsy to please hurry the fuck up, the door opened. And out came Hermione Granger.

She looked wary, but she was glowing. Had she applied extra makeup before coming out to see him? The thought had made Draco want to giggle like a girl.

"Malfoy," she greeted and opened the door wider, a clear indication for Draco that he should get up and go into her office.

"Granger, lovely to see you," he stood and walked over to her, stopping to greet her face to face before walking in.

"Likewise," she said, face as flat and expressionless as ever.

The inside of her office was as lavish as outside, with two very comfortable armchairs positioned in front of her very large oak desk.

"Would you care for some tea?" Granger asked and Draco shook his head.

"No, thanks. I just came here to see you," Draco said bluntly as he took a seat at the armchair.

"Why?" Granger was walking to her own seat behind the desk – slowly, wearily, as if Draco was going to jump on her and rip her throat out.

"I thought that it would be fair that since you religiously came to see me perform every night until three days ago, I would come and return the favour," Draco said, and he suddenly a wee bit bitter. Hm, strange.

"Ah, yes, I've been busy," Granger sighed and sank into her own chair, folding her hands on the desk.

"Also, I've come to ask about the gift."

"What about it?" Granger asked immediately, and began to arrange documents on her table. "Did you like it?"

"I did, but my question is why did you do it?"

Hermione watched him, gaze meeting his dauntlessly.

"If you like it, does it matter why I sent it to you?" Granger asked.

"Well, in my case, yes. We hardly know each other and the only moment we shared together was when I was grinding up against you so … yeah, I'm a little curious," Draco said nonchalantly.

Granger looked down and raised her eyebrows a little bit.

"Simply put, I have no idea why I got that for you, Malfoy. It was impulsive. And it rarely ever happens with me," Granger said, expression still blank.

"What's gotten into you, Granger? Why are you so stiff and ... stiff?" Draco struggled to find a different word, and failed.

"I told you, it's the way I am now."

"Rubbish."

"Look, if you hate the gift, give it a back and rest assured I won't send you anymore," Granger said, and the poor girl looked so awkward and uncomfortable that Draco wanted to ease that, but he chose not to.

"I like the gift, but I won't keep it since you don't really have a firm reason as to why you sent me such a gift – lovely and thought as it is. So here," he said, procuring the box from his pocket and laying it gently on Granger's table.

"Wha – why -" Granger began but Draco cut her off with a quick "Goodbye, Granger."

Draco was halfway to the door before she called out to him.

"Wait, Malfoy!"

Draco made a show of turning as slow as possible – hey, it was part of his job as well.

He didn't say anything else, and merely waited for her to speak.

Granger was standing up already, and her face was determined.

"I told you once, that something changed in me," Granger began, slowly. Malfoy gave a short nod and gestured for her to continue. "One day I woke up and I couldn't feel anything. I stopped feeling anything. I've tried everything and it didn't work."

Draco frowned. Where on earth was this leading to? He hoped this wasn't going to be a sob story as to how Hermione Granger became an ice queen.

"That was until I saw you."

Draco looked up so fast that he almost cricked his neck.

"When I saw you, my heart started beating faster and faster. I'm not sure what that means but I reckon that's a good thing for me, at least."

Draco was dumbfounded, he did not know what to say.

By now, he really should have said something to ease Granger's discomfort – she looked positively constipated and like she was going to throw up, but he did not know what to say. It was the sweetest, unexpected thing anyone has ever said to him.

Granger shook her head before taking a deep breath.

"I guess … all I'm trying to say is … is …"

"Is?" Draco pressed.

"I like you. But I don't know how to go about these things – and being emotionally constipated as I am now, I really don't know how to express myself properly so I … I resort to getting gifts or buying expensive things for someone to show how I feel."

Draco raised a brow. Wow. Granger had just made him feel special and poor at the same time.

"Are you trying to buy my affections then?" Draco questioned.

"No, no, not at all, it's just that … you know with your working and living conditions if I presume correctly, may not be the best but –"

Draco's eyebrows disappeared. She was insulting him _again._

"Ugh, this is going the wrong way," Granger pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head. "I'm not … trying to make you feel like …"

"Like a geisha girl?"

"Exactly," Granger threw her arms out and exclaimed. "I just thought I'd buy you something nice."

There was a long silence before Draco sniffed and said, "It was nice."

Hermione sent him a small smile and then tapped the box, before sinking into her chair again.

"So … keep it. Please," she was burying her head in her face out of embarrassment, and that pleased Draco to no end.

There was no movement or sound for quite a bit.

"Fine," Draco suddenly said, walking over to collect the item instead of summoning it with his wand.

"Great," Granger mumbled.

He marched towards the door again and turned at the last minute.

"By the way, if you're serious about fancying me, pick a time, date and place and we should have dinner," Draco said, and watched as Granger looked up curiously. "Goodbye, Granger. See you at Ascendio, when you have the time."

A quiet "okay" was heard before Draco shut the door.

**TBC!  
>Read and review!<strong>

A/N: Wow, didn't think stripper Draco would get so many fans. Pervs ;)


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